Noguera



March 13, 1956 J. NOGUERA 2,737,690

DRAFTING APPARATUS FOR TEXTILE FIBRES Filed April 26, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet l March 13, 1956 J. NOGUERA 2,737,690

TING APPARATUS FOR TEXTILE FIBRES DRAF Filed April 26; 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Mum I Now/ERA yWM ATry

United States Patent 2,737,690 DRAFTING APPARATUS FOR TEXTILE FIBRES Joseph Noguera, Manchester, England, assignor to Casablancas High Draft Company Limited, Manchester, England, a British company Application April 26, 1954, Serial No. 425,525 Claims priority, application Great Britain June 1, 1953 5 Claims. (Cl. 19-131) This invention relates to drafting apparatus for textile fibres, the apparatus being of the kind employing cooperating superposed endless belts which run over rear driving rollers and front tensor members and are laterally guided between cradle side walls.

The tensor members which respectively support the forward belt loop ends in such apparatus may form part of a'two-pronged tensor carried by the cradle side walls, or such members may be entirely separate and supported individually by the aforesaid cradle walls.

In either event, where it is necessary to mount the belts so that they are rather taut in operation, it is often extremely difiicult to insert or remove a tensor member into or from its operative belt-supporting position, this being particularly the case when the belts are made of synthetic material in such a way that, to all intents and purposes, they are non-extensible.

A further dilficulty arising from the use of taut belts occurs when separate tensor members are in use and the two co-operating belt loops, together with their respective supporting and guiding parts, are separable, as is normally the case when the apparatus is employed in conjunction with top arm weighting. Then the separate bottom cradle, which is normally very exactly located by the top belt roller necks against rotation around the bottom roller necks, will be no longer so located when the arm, with the top belt and its associated supporting parts, is raised. As a'result, a taut bottom belt will have a very strong tendency to turn with the bottom roller and thereby swing the bottom cradle into a position in which the cradle itself, or the bottom belt, impinges on the front bottom roller of the apparatus with damaging results to all parts concerned.

A main object of the present invention is to provide a modified arrangement of cradle and tensor which overcomes satisfactorily both the foregoing difliculties arising from the use of taut belts.

Accordingly the invention provides, in or for a drafting apparatus having co-operating separable belt loops mounted to run over rear driving rollers and'separate front tensor members, a lateral belt loop guide cradle with side walls having enlarged registering tensor supporting apertures therethrough shaped to enable an inserted tensor member to swing and slide therein, whilst supporting the front end of one said loop, between a rear non-tensioning position, which said tensor member will tend to occupy whilst said co-operating loops are separated, and a front tensioning position to which the said member will be moved automatically under the pressure exerted between the co-operating loops when the latter are brought into operative relationship. With this arrangement the insertion of the tensor member into its associated belt loop is greatly facilitated since such insertion can take place whilst the loop is slack and, furthermore, the belt no longer remains taut when the aforesaid pressure exerted by the co-operating loop is removed.

In order that the invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect, one embodiment thereof 2,737,690 Patented Mar. 13, 1956 2' will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation showing a bottom drafting roller and endless belt loop with associated lateral guide cradle and front supporting tensor member, the belt and tensor member being inoperatively positioned,

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 but shows the bottom belt and tensor member operatively positioned in relation to a co-operating top belt and roller, which latter are indicated diagrammatically in chain dotted lines,

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 with the cradle Wall in the foreground omitted and the top belt and roller in full lines, and

Figure 4 is a front elevation corresponding to Figure 2 with the top belt and roller in full lines.

Referring now to the drawings, a single tensor member 1 is arranged to support the forward end of a lower belt loop 2 forming part of a two-belt drafting apparatus which is employed, in well-known manner, in conjunction with top arm weighting. The lower belt loop 2 is supported at its rear end, by a bottom driving roller 3 and co-operates in the usual way with the upper belt loop 4 of the apparatus the operative position of which is indicated, as aforesaid, in Figure 2 and Figure 3. The rear end of the upper belt loop 4 is supported by an upper driving roller 5 and the forward end of this loop 4 is supported in any well-known manner (not shown).

A lower cradle having side walls 6 coupled by a transverse member 7 is arranged laterally to guide the lower belt loop 2. This cradle is carried in known manner on the lower driving roller 3 by the engagement of necks Sat, at each end of the aforesaid roller, with downwardly directed registering slots 8 in the respective cradle side walls. The cradle is further located, also in known manner, by the engagement of registering slots 9, opening through the upper edges of the cradle side walls, respectively with necks 5a at each end of the upper driving roller 5, this engagement only being elfective when the upper roller and upper belt loop are in the operative position.

The tensor member 1 for supporting the forward end of the lower belt loop 2 may be of conventional design, having a flat body portion with parallel longitudinal side edges 1a, which are rounded in cross-section, and narrowed necks 1b at the ends which are co-planar with the body portion and also have rounded side edges. One said neck portion 1b may be extended to form a disc-like handle 10, the opposed faces of which lie in planes perpendicular to the body portion, and the other neck portion may be extended to a point to facilitate entry of the tensor member into a belt loop.

To support the tensor member 1, the lower cradle side walls 6 are provided with corresponding enlarged registering apertures 10 which are of sufiicient size to permit the tensor member to be inserted through the aperture in a side wall on one side of the cradle and into position within the forward end of the belt loop 2, the leading end of the tensor member being engaged in the aperture in the opposite cradle side wall. When the tensor member is positioned within the belt loop 2 as aforesaid, the apertures 10 in the walls provide seatings for the respective tensor necks 1b, the lower edge 1a of the tensor body portion then projecting below the bottoms of the apertures between the cradle side walls to prevent longitudinal withdrawal of the tensor.

The apertures 10 are each shaped to permit the tensor member 1 to swing and slide therein between a non-tensioning or inoperative position, in which the supported belt 2 is slack, and a tensioning or operative position in which the upper working edge la of the tensor is moved forwardly away from the rear supporting roller 3 to tension the belt. To this end each aperture has a rear edge 10:: which has a slight forward inclination in the upward direction in relation to a transverse plane perpendicular with the drafting field. Below thisinclined rear edge Etta, the aperture has an enlarged bulbous part ltl b which merges, about one-third of the way along the leading aperture edge, into'n'part 180 which is of considerably greater inclination than the'rear inclined edge part Illa. T his inclined part 160 of 'the'forwar'd aperture edge extends over about one-third of the axial length of the aperture and then merges'into a rearwardly inclined part 18d, the upper end of whic'h'joins the upper end of the forwardly inclined part'of the rear edge ltia in a shallow curve lite.

With the arrangement described, 'the'tensor member 1 can be readily inserted intothe lower belt loop 2, after the latter has been located "on its driving roller'3 .and the lower cradlepo'sitioned onth'e aforesaid roller necks 3a. For the purpose of inserting the tensor member 1, the co-operating belt'loops'il and 4 willbe separated, the upper belt loop 4 within various supporting and guiding parts being, for example, raised with the weighting arm. The tensor member 1 will be inserted into the lower belt loop 2 from one side of the1lower cradle and when so inserted will tend to take up a position in which the rear faces of the tensor'necks lb'bear against the rear inclined edges a of the respective apertures, whilst the under neck edges'seat in the lower bulbous parts 10b of the apertures. In this position of the tensor member 1, which is illustrated in Figure '1, the body portion of the tensor member will have only a slightforward inclination towards the upper working tensor edge In and the lower belt loop will remain relatively slack. When, however, the upper belt loop 4 with its supporting and guiding parts is lowered iuto'the operative position as shown in Figure 2, the operative run of the upper-belt loop 4, will bear upon the operative'run of'the lower belt loop 2 and in so doing will press the upper working edge in of the lower tensor'member in a forward and downward direction. This will cause the tensor member to swing forwardly in the aperturesand also to slide bodily around the edges of the bulbous aperture parts 10b into aposition in which the front faces of the tensor necks 1b bear against the inclined parts 16c of the leading edges of the apertures. To enable the tensor member to assume this position, the bottom edges of the tensor necks will not only act as fulcrums about which the entire tensor memher will swing but will also themselves silde around the bulbous portions at the bottoms of the apertures'as aforesaid. The tensor member will thus automatically be brought into a position in which the bottom belt loop 2 is tensionedand in operative relationship with the upper belt loop 4.

When the pressure of the upper belt loop 4 is relieved, by'separating the belt loops as aforesaid, the drag of the taut bottom belt 2 on the associated tensor member 1 will tend to return this member to its non-operative or non-tensioning position in which the bottom belt is relatively slack.

It will be appreciated from the foregoing that the invention provides the double advantage of facilitating the entry and withdrawal of a tensor member into andfrom a belt which has to be taut during operation and, at the same time, reduces the possibility of damage to the equipment due to misplacement thereof whilst the belts are separated.

The invention has been described as applied to a'bottonrbelt loop and lower cradle but it will be appreciated that it could equally well be applied to an upper belt loop and the associated upper cradle.

I claim:

1. For use with the belt loop of a drafting apparatus, a pair of members adapted to be supported by the apparatus at the opposite edgesof the belt loop, a tensor memher, and cooperating means on saidm'emb'ers adapte'dto support said tensormember for movement between a position in which said tensor member places the belt loop 'under tension and a position in which the tensor member relieves the belt loop of tension, said means comprising cooperating seatings on the members for perr sitting pivotal and sliding movement of the tensor memher when moving between its two positions.

2. For use with the belt loop of a drafting apparatus, a pair of rnembers'adapted to be supported by the apparatus at the opposite edges of the belt loop, a tensor member, and cooperating means on said members adapted to support said tensor member for movement between a position in which said tensor member places the belt loop under tension and a position in which the tensor member relieves the belt loop of tension, said means comprising cooperating seatings on the members for permitting pivotal and sliding movement of the tensor member when moving between its two positions and cooperating portions on the members adapted to engage one another selectively to limit the travel of the tensor member when moving from one to the other of its positions and to support the tensor member in its selected position 3. A textile fibre drafting apparatus comprising a belt ioop, a belt loop guide cradle having watts provided with apertures and a tensor member for insertion within the forward end of the loop and having portions for r tion by said aperturescharacterized by the fact that s. .l apertures are of a size to permit insertion and withdrawal of the tensor member through the apertures into and out of the loop and that said apertures and to or member portions have cooperating means for supporting the tensor member for movement between positions for plus a the loop under tension and for relieving the loop of tension.

4. For a textile fibre drafti apparatus baring a belt loop supported by a rear driving roller, a trout tent-or member adapted to place the ioop under-tension to provide a fibre guide surface, a belt loop guide cradle adapter. to be supported by the apps s having sine walls prc-- vided with registering tensor member supporting apertures, said tensor member having opposite end pOYiiOJIS for reception by said apertures, each of said apertu and end portions being relativeiy dimensioned to pc movement of the tensor member bctw -n its loop to; ing position and a loop non-tcnsioning positi said aperturesand end portions h stantially rounded seatiugs on the podons therco. adapted to be remote from the guide surface when the cradle and tensor member are supported by the apparatus so that said tensor member may pivot and slide in its movement between its two positions. each or said apertures having a front and a rear edge extcndingtrom each aperture seating and adapted to inclineforwardly towards the guide surface when the cradle is ported by the up ratus to provide locations cooper. with the end p0 tious of the tensor member to support the tensor niem selectively in its tensioning and non-tensioning positions.

5. In a textile fibre drafting apparatus having cooperaling separable guide surfaces at least one of which is constituted by one run or" an endless belt ioop, a tensor member for supporting the forward end of the loop, and a loop guide cradle supported by the apparatus and having side walls provided with registering apertures, sa d memberhaving opposite end portitns for reception by said apertures, each of said-apertures having a bulbous shaped seating at its end remote from the guide surfacesv a rear edge extending from said seating at a forward inclination towards the guide surfaces and a front edge extending from said seating at agreaterforward inclination towards the guide surfaces than that of: the rear edge, each of said end portions of said member having a rounded seating cooperating with said bulbous seating to permit swinging and .sliding movement of the member between a loop tensionin'gpositionand a'loopnon-tensioning position and rear and front iedges cooperating with the-rearand Ifrontaedges of the apertures to retain the on, each or tensor member selectively in its two positions, movement of the tensor member to its tensioning position from its non-tensioning position being etfected automatically by pressure exerted betwen the guide surfaces when the guide surfaces are brought together.

FOREIGN PATENTS 

